News

Microba has partnered with researchers at the University of Queensland’s (UQ) Faculty of Medicine to study gut bacteria of people with Parkinson’s disease, with a goal of discovering and developing new biomarkers and therapies for this neurodegenerative disorder. A first clinical trial is planned for this year at sites…

While scientists continue to shed light on a connection between gut bacteria and Parkinson’s disease, one study has found that gut fungi appear not to contribute to the neurodegenerative disorder. This result might serve as a useful warning against investing in potentially futile anti-fungal treatments for people with…

The more anxiety a person feels early in the course of Parkinson’s disease, the less likely that person will stay physically active, which correlates with cognitive impairment. The study with that finding, “Physical activity as a mediator of anxiety and cognitive functioning in Parkinson’s disease,” was…

Seemingly simple reach-to-grasp tasks rely on more complex interactions between two specific types of nerve cells in the basal ganglia — the brain region that controls movement and is mainly affected in Parkinson’s disease — than previously thought, a study in mice shows. The data highlighted that both types…

Expanding telemedicine services and their accessibility could support people with Parkinson’s disease through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond by addressing unmet needs and economic disparities. These are some of the conclusions of a survey conducted by the Parkinson’s Foundation, in collaboration with Columbia University, that revealed key…

Vercise Genus, a fourth-generation system for deep brain stimulation (DBS) to treat people with Parkinson’s disease, is now available in the U.S.,  Boston Scientific, which markets the system, announced. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the system’s conditional use with full-body MRI scans, following a similar…

Sleep problems associated with Parkinson’s disease, as well as ways of managing such problems, were the focus of expert discussion in a recent webinar.  The webinar, “Night Fight with Parkinson’s: Acting Out Dreams, Insomnia and Other Sleep Issues…

Scientists have found evidence that BMP5 and BMP7, two bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) that have been found to play a role in the development of dopamine-producing neurons, may help slow or even stop the progression of Parkinson’s disease. They discovered in a mouse model of Parkinson’s that the two…

A $670,000 grant by the Michael J. Fox Foundation will go toward advancing a technology platform that might lead to a smell test to detect Parkinson’s disease (PD) in its early stages, allowing an earlier start to treatment and, possibly, leading to better therapies. The grant, given to…

Neither a patient’s sex nor the degree of disease progression substantially affects the manifestations of sleep disturbances in Parkinson’s disease, a study reports. More research into this “very common” and life-affecting problem — and into other non-motor symptoms — of Parkinson’s is needed, its researchers said. The study,…